Wayne, West Virginia, November 18, 2020
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On Monday, November 9, Holy Cross Monastery (Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia) in Wayne, West Virginia, officially broke ground for the construction of a new church.
Abbot Archimandrite Seraphim and the monastery brotherhood served a moleben at the site of the new church and sprinkled the area with holy water, after which the excavators immediately began working, reports the monastery website.
Holy Cross is one of the most dynamic and fastest growing monastic communities in America. Its current chapel was originally built for a brotherhood of 12 and the occasional pilgrim, but the brotherhood now numbers nearly 30 monastics, with many more desiring to join once there is space. The church is also often overflowing with pilgrims now.
Two more men were clothed as novices on the feast of the Beheading of the Forerunner in September.
The church was designed by the renowned Orthodox architect Andrew Gould, combining traditional Orthodox styles with a local West Virginia flavor. The lower level of the church will also have a kitchen and trapeza, as the current dining hall is on the brink of collapse.
Gould previously created a shrine and reliquary for the Russian Royal Martyrs for the monastery.
Thanks to a generous benefactor, the monastery has already received a gift of a full set of 13 bells for the new church, made at the largest bell foundry in Russia.
However, due to the remoteness of the monastery, and the decision to build a kitchen and trapeza, the cost of the new church has turned out to be significantly more than originally expected. The monastery is thus dividing the construction into phases and completing each phase when there are enough funds.
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The monastery has currently raised $1,048,870 towards its goal of $3.5 million.
“Please prayerfully consider supporting this God-pleasing work, so necessary not only for the monks and pilgrims of Holy Cross Monastery, but also for the entire world which suffers so profoundly from the need for God and for the fullness of Christian life and prayer which monasticism strives to incarnate to the highest degree possible,” the brotherhood writes.
Please visit the monastery website to make a one-time, monthly, quarterly, or annual donation.
